Winner: 2022 Early Career Prize for Excellence in Higher Education
Dr Ben Pilgrim
University of Nottingham
For inspirational teaching contributions at the school-university interface, most notably through significant contributions to the UK Chemistry Olympiad.
I have worked on several initiatives at the school-university interface, particularly the UK Chemistry Olympiad. The Chemistry Olympiad is a worldwide competition that encourages excellence and promotes collaboration within chemistry, where students compete against others from all over the world. Whilst only four students are in the final UK team each year, many thousands of students in their upper years of secondary school get exposed to exciting chemistry through participation in the selection and training rounds of this competition.
Unlike national exams, the Olympiad is not restricted to a limited syllabus, and can draw on topical news stories and cutting-edge research to champion the central role of chemistry in modern life, allow students to show creativity in problem solving and spark their interest in studying chemistry at university.
The questions are certainly very tough, but in my mind that is a very good thing. The world has many very difficult challenges to tackle in the 21st century. Lots of these are chemistry-based, and this will need our brightest young minds to have been inspired to study the subject at an advanced level to be able to address these challenges.
Biography
Ben S Pilgrim is a 番茄社区 University Research Fellow and Proleptic Assistant Professor at the University of Nottingham. Ben was born in Hertfordshire and his love for chemistry was fostered at Parmiter鈥檚 School in Watford. He studied for his MChem at St John's College, Oxford University, from 2005鈥�2009 and then remained there to complete his doctoral studies in organic chemistry with Timothy Donohoe. In 2013 he moved to the University of Cambridge on a Herchel Smith Research Fellowship with Jonathan Nitschke on metal鈥搊rganic cages. In 2016, Ben was awarded a Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 Research Fellowship, and in 2019 moved to Nottingham to start his own lab in supramolecular chemistry.
His current research interests include supramolecular catalysis, developing responsive supramolecular systems, and designing new synthetic routes to interlocked molecules.
Ben is also a leading advocate for public engagement and outreach in chemistry, particularly at the school-university interface. Ben is a key member of the UK Chemistry Olympiad Working Group of the 番茄社区, writing and coordinating all aspects of the national rounds of the Chemistry Olympiad competition.
Ben has been Head Mentor of the UK team at the International Final since 2011 and currently serves on the International Steering Committee for this competition. Ben was a key founding member of the Cambridge Chemistry Challenge (C鈧僉鈧�) for lower sixth students, helped develop the Isaac Chemistry website, and has made appearances on BBC radio's The Naked Scientist.
Have an inquisitive mind. Always ask: why? If you think the status quo explanation is incorrect, then challenge it.
Dr Ben Pilgrim
Q&A
What advice would you give to a young person considering a career in chemistry?
1. Follow what genuinely excites you in science, don鈥檛 go into an area just because everyone else says it is interesting or will lead to you getting a better job.
2. Have an inquisitive mind. Always ask: why? If you think the status quo explanation is incorrect, then challenge it.
3. Don鈥檛 worry about what career you might have after your study. Whether you have a career that directly uses your chemistry knowledge or not, the analytical, logical and problem solving nature of chemistry as a subject will be excellent training for any career path.
How have your students inspired you?
I have had the fortune of working with many incredibly bright students over the years. Teaching great students always keeps you on your toes. They often see things with a fresh perspective that someone who has worked in the area for ages can miss. Often the wide-ranging and sometimes quite off-topic discussions I have with students during my teaching gives me ideas for new directions in my research.
How can good science education support solving global challenges?
From global warming, to limited resources on our planet, to custom medicines, to the next smart materials and technologies, it is hard to think of any pressing global challenge that can be solved without the input of chemists. Whilst our field interfaces with so many others, knowing the core chemical principles of how and why atoms stick together and behave the way they do is crucial for the next generation(s) of students who will need to solve these problems.
What has been a highlight for you (either personally or in your career)?
I was on the UK Chemistry Olympiad Team myself as a student in 2005 and at the time when I won a medal for my country that was one of the proudest moments of my life. I still have the medal but it sits on a shelf, and it is meeting the great/talented friends and colleagues that I wouldn't know if it were not for chemistry that has been the real highlight of my career. In a sense the bonds we make between people are more important than the bonds we make between atoms.
What has been a challenge for you (either personally or in your career)?
I really enjoy both teaching and research. I鈥檓 fortunate to have a job where I can do both but managing the split between them is difficult. Unfortunately, many within the higher education sector view don鈥檛 view teaching with the same importance as research, meaning there are pressures (particularly as an early career researcher) just to do the minimum teaching required as it doesn鈥檛 鈥榗ount鈥� as much as research. However, without excellent teaching there won鈥檛 be the next generation of excellent researchers to do the research. This is something I think the whole sector needs to address in the coming years.
What is your favourite element?
I like both osmium and iridium. They're often found together in nature and in some senses 鈥榗ompete鈥�. Osmium just beats iridium as the densest of the naturally occurring elements, whereas iridium has just overtaken osmium with the highest known oxidation state. Both have some cool uses as well.